New Brunswick Drug Plan

Posted on Mar 24, 2014

On December 10, 2013, The Prescription and Catastrophic Drug Insurance Act was introduced by the New Brunswick Minister of Health. The New Brunswick Drug Plan will help New Brunswickers avoid catastrophic drug costs and ensure that prescription drug insurance is available to every New Brunswicker.

The plan will cover drugs listed on the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Program formulary. There will be no deductible and coverage will not be denied because of age, gender or pre-existing medical conditions.

The New Brunswick Drug Plan will be implemented in two phases. Phase 1 begins on May 1, 2014, with one year voluntary enrolment period for New Brunswickers with a valid Medicare card. Phase 2 begins April 1, 2015 when all New Brunswickers must have prescription drug insurance.

Phase 1 – (May 1, 2014 – March 31, 2015)

The plan is voluntary and the premiums are graduated based on income

All plan members will be required to pay a 30 per cent co-pay at the pharmacy up to a maximum of $30 per prescription

Children 18 and under will not pay premiums, provided that at least one parent is enrolled in the plan

Phase 1 premiums are as follows:

Gross Income Levels

Individual

Single with children/Couple with or without children

Annual Premium

(per adult)

Monthly Premium

(per adult)

$26,360 or less

$49,389 or less

$800

$67

$26,361 to $50,000

$49,390 to $75,000

$1,400

$117

$50,001 to $75,000

$75,001 to $100,000

$1,600

$133

Over $75,000

Over $100,000

$2,000

$167

Phase 2 – (April 1, 2015)

Private group plans will be required to cover all drugs covered under the New Brunswick Drug Plan

Costs at the pharmacy must be managed in one of two ways depending on plan design:

1. co-payments paid at pharmacy may not exceed $30 per prescription; or

2. co-payments and/or deductibles paid at the pharmacy for each plan member may not exceed $2,000 per year

Private group plans cannot have annual or lifetime caps

For further assistance please contact Phyllis Leger at (506) 801-9243, pleger@fs-gc.ca or Joël Drolet at (506) 801-9242, jdrolet@fs-gc.ca . You can also visit the New Brunswick Government website for more details and also consult the questions and answers section.